U.S. Loses Its Measles-Free Status After 26 Years as Cases Top 5,400

The United States has lost the measles-elimination status it held for 26 years after international health experts concluded the virus has spread continuously in the country for more than a year, according to multiple reports.

The Pan American Health Organization reached that conclusion this week, researchers with direct knowledge of the deliberations told KFF Health News. PAHO had planned a public announcement for Nov. 17, so the decision has not yet been formally released.

The Washington Post reported the same determination from a person familiar with the matter. PAHO, the World Health Organization’s Americas branch, relied on analyses by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and independent experts.

Elimination does not mean zero cases. It means outbreaks sparked by travelers die out. The status hinges on whether the same strain circulates for 12 months or longer without a break, Axios reported.

The CDC has confirmed 5,412 cases so far this year, compared with 2,289 in all of 2025, according to Axios. That is the highest count in 35 years.

Pennsylvania and Wisconsin each reported another measles-associated death Friday, including an infant in Wisconsin, Al Jazeera reported. That brings state-reported deaths this year to 10, seven of them in Pennsylvania.

The CDC’s own tally lists six deaths. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. asked CDC Director Erica Schwartz not to count some state-reported deaths, saying there was no evidence they were measles-associated, Al Jazeera reported.

Two doses of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine prevent about 97% of infections, KFF Health News noted. Only 3% of more than 7,600 cases confirmed since January 2025 were in vaccinated people, according to Johns Hopkins University researchers.

Kindergarten vaccination coverage fell from 95.2% in the 2019-20 school year to 92.4% in 2025-26, Al Jazeera reported. Health officials say coverage must stay at about 95% to stop outbreaks from spreading.

Babies usually aren’t vaccinated before their first birthday, leaving them especially vulnerable. Recent deaths include a 7-month-old in New York and infants in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, KFF Health News reported.

Health and Human Services spokesperson Emily Hilliard attributed the resurgence to vaccination gaps that opened years before this administration. Childhood vaccination rates have declined steadily since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

“The President and the Secretary have repeatedly encouraged measles vaccination, coordinated with states, and facilitated the deployment of vaccine doses across the country,” White House spokesperson Allison Schuster said in an email.

Many scientists blame the administration for spreading vaccine misinformation and cutting millions of dollars from state immunization programs, KFF Health News reported. Kennedy led a prominent anti-vaccine organization before taking over HHS.

“It’s a very sad moment,” said Anne Schuchat, a former CDC deputy director. “Measles causes so much unnecessary suffering, everything from a high fever and missed work and school to long-term complications like progressive degenerative nerve disease and death.”

To regain the status, current U.S. outbreaks must end and future ones must stop spreading within a year, said Paul Rota, a microbiologist and former CDC official. With outbreaks expanding in several states, he said, that moment isn’t on the horizon.

Canada, Spain and the United Kingdom also recently lost their measles-elimination status. The U.S. has left the World Health Organization but remains a member of PAHO, Al Jazeera noted.

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